Morrisville's Town Council met with more than 25 residents Tuesday night to talk about the budget and projects that the town should be supporting in the future.

While the meeting wasn't specifically addressing the Long Range Financial Plan (much to the chagrin of several attendees), town staffers said everything gathered at the meeting will be considered as part of that plan.

Originally, council members had hoped to shape the LRFP by the end of January, but now they appear to be putting more of a cushion on that time limit to allow for more immediate budget considerations.

The meeting was designed to flesh out ideas on ten different topics; there will be a survey posted on the town's website within a few days so that people can prioritize the new suggestions to go along with improvements that are already on the town's radar.

"I am thinking some of the transportation projects may have to be moved up in years if possible, and some other things may need to be moved around as a result of this," said Mayor Jan Faulkner. "We did hear a lot from the transportation end of things tonight, as well as some of the greenways and open spaces and all that."

Faulkner said she hopes people who made suggestions understand the reality of the budget situation; one of the reasons this meeting even happened was because the town leaders had to drastically cut items out of the budget they passed less than six months ago.

Some of the attendees agreed.

"I wouldn't say this was a budget meeting really. It was an anti-budget meeting because a lot of these suggestions were just extremely expensive and pie-in-the-sky," said Morrisville resident Judi Bank. "And really, I think the emphasis has to be on what things are really important and not on what new, whiz-bang kinds of things can we all suggest."

The following is a list of each category, along with some of the concerns and/or suggestions made by residents.

1. Pedestrian (Sidewalks and greenways)

Quality, i.e. cracked sidewalks, improper grading.
Public sidewalks encroaching on private building.
Access to Pinwheel Park.
Make sure there's a difference between greenways and sidewalks - materials, etc.
Connectivity to RTP greenways.
Dangerous existing sidewalks as the town continues to be developed.
Church Street still has no pedestrian access, despite being one of the busier roads in town.

2. Flood Control (stormwater, drainage, erosion control, water quality)

Drainage issues that could potentially get worse over time, particularly in places like Wexford.
Larger buffers around creeks and other bodies of water.
Grading that doesn't allow for proper drainage.

3. Municipal Services (street maintenance, building codes, code enforcement, facilities)

Be more "green" - energy, operations, policies, ordinances, etc.
Quality of the intersection of Davis Drive & Morrisville Carpenter Road.
Traffic issues on Highway 54 at Cary Parkway.
A true "Downtown" in Morrisville.
Pot-holes/resurfacing on two lane roads.
Speeding problems on Town Hall Drive.

4. Conservation (green space, trees, air quality, noise reduction)

The more green space the better.
Encourage planting trees that won't come down in storms.
Be aware of DOT easements and landscaped property.
Noise from planes taking off or landing at RDU.
Allow neighborhood housing authorities to maintain public road landscaping.
Plant new trees if development requires the removal of old trees.

5. Environmental Improvements/Protection (water quality, air quality, contamination mediation)

Despite dependence on Cary's water supply, consider ways to improve system - work with developers and residents.
Mandate the use of warm-weather grass.
Stronger environmental protection enforcement; prevent runoff sediment from new developments, for example.
Mandatory recycling program.
More recycling receptacles on town property.
Limit the number of gas stations in town limits.
Encourage the addition of a medical facility from WakeMed or Rex Health Care.

6. Public Safety (fire, police, building codes, traffic calming, crime prevention, fire safety, medical response)

Reflectors on Church Street.
Fire station West of Highway 54.
Traffic Calming funding; reassess traffic issues after developments are finished being built.
Hire police officer to specifically monitor certain roads with speeding problems.
Beware of connectivity issues with Kitts Creek, Town Hall Drive, Louis Stephens.
More lighting at public parks; more police presence.
Tighten up ordinances for developers in order to prevent new growth from having unintended consequences.

7. Communication/Technology (community broadband, surveillance, information access, emergency notification)

Wireless or broadband access throughout the entire town.
Stream audio of town meetings on the town's website.

8. Cultural/History (historic preservation, memorials, cultural arts, library, visitor center, public gathering places)

Veterans Park/Memorial in the downtown area; possibly include a Civil War Park.
Historic Morrisville Museum - possibly use the Pugh House.
Renovation of historic buildings along Highway 54.
Because of budget problems, put a visitor center in Town Hall or other public buildings, rather than try to build something on a large scale.
Make sure there are legitimate reasons to keep historic buildings, other than that they're "old."
Joint public/private Bed & Breakfast projects with some of the historic buildings?
Maintain historic exteriors, but allow preserved buildings to be renovated inside.
More historic markers; possibly incorporate audio/video playbacks.
Bring back the Holiday Parade.

9. Parks/Sports/Fitness (programs, facilities)

Set criteria for how parks are constructed/improved.
Add free public tennis courts.
Create a new park in the Northwest part of town, with open space, playground, and possibly a community center.
Build a dog park.
Rock climbing facilities.
Start a "buddy sports" program for children with disabilities who can compete on teams with children who don't have special needs.
Incorporate a fountain in the downtown improvements.

10. Transportation (roadways, transit, signalization, round about, connectivity)

Create something like Cary's C-Tran public transit system for the elderly or people with disabilities.
Public bus system with sheltered bus stops.
Central hub to connect with other systems like TTA.
Traffic signal at Church Street and Highway 54.
Find ways to keep traffic off of neighborhood roads and on the streets that were designed to be major thoroughfares.
Make NC 54 improvement a major priority.

11. Other

Immediately improve stoplight times for the intersection of Morrisville Carpenter & NC54.
Pedestrian crosswalks at Morrisville Carpenter and Davis Drive.
Figure out how to improve roads without impeding traffic as much as is usually done.
Improve pay or perks for town employees (possibly partner with private businesses for discounts or special rates) in order to attract quality applicants.
Budget restraint - prioritize between "needs" and "wants."